My Childhood Friend, a Vtuber, Treated Me Like TrashโIโm Never Producing For Her Again
The next day.
This time, I rang the intercom at Mizuta-sanโs house.
From the other end of the intercom,
โW-w-wait a secโฆ!!โ
came a flustered voice.
It was five minutes before our appointment.
I hadnโt even arrived that earlyโwas she still getting ready?
(This kind of reminds me of when we were setting up the microphone.)
Back then, sheโd suddenly asked me to wait just five minutes, and Iโd been left standing there in front of the door.
I wonder how long itโll take this time.
I waited for Mizuta-san to come out, glancing at my watch every now and then.
โS-sorry to keep you waitingโฆโ
As it turned out, it was exactly 15 minutes again.
At this point, it might as well be a default 15-minute wait time built into Mizuta-sanโs routine.
Just like the trailers before a movie.
Mizuta-san closed the front door and approached me, her eyes widening the moment she saw me.
โEekโฆ Komachi-san, why are you dressed so stylishly in your casual clothesโฆ?โ
โNah, itโs just totally normal.โ
โI-it just feels so much like a โpopular guyโ vibeโฆ What on earth are you going to do to me todayโฆ?โ
โNothingโs going to happen.โ
Well, to be honest, itโs not like I didnโt put any effort into it at all.
Even though itโs not a date, I figured I should at least look presentable if Iโm going out with a girl.
That said, in reality, I just dug out some clothes and hair wax Iโd bought a long time ago, back when I was planning a date with Yue.
โBy the way, Mizuta-sanโs casual clothes are, umโฆโ
โP-please donโt say thatโฆ!โ
โYou look cute.โ
โI know youโre just flattering me, so please donโt say thatโฆ!! Thatโs exactly why Iโm going shopping right nowโฆ!!โ
Well, I suppose that makes sense.
To be honest, it wasnโt so bad that I wanted to cover my eyes.
If I had to describe it in one phraseโ
(All black)
From her hat to her bottoms, she was a stunning solid black.
Plus, both her top and bottom were baggy, giving off a strangely hip-hop vibe.
โWell then, shall we go?โ
โY-yesโฆโ
We started walking toward the mall in front of the station.
However, before I knew it, Mizuta-san had fallen behind.
Oh no, did I walk too fast?
Intending to match her stride, I gradually slowed down.
I thought weโd be able to walk side by side nowโ
(Huh? Why?)
Once again, Mizuta-san had been left behind, trailing behind me.
I blinked a few times and stared at her.
โฆNo way.
Just to be safe, I tried slowing down even more.
(Just as I thought.)
Mizuta-san was still behind me.
No, looking closely, every time I stopped, sheโd come to a complete halt right behind me, maintaining a set distance.
Just like a clumsy tail.
I stopped and turned around.
โโฆMizuta-san, do you maybe not want to walk side-by-side with me?โ
โHuh? N-no, thatโs not itโฆ!โ
โThen why are you walking so far behind me?โ
It was Mizuta-san herself who suggested we go together today, after all.
Itโs as if sheโd been dragged here against her willโฆ
Could it be that I smell weird or something?
Or is she trying to be the quintessential Japanese lady, walking three steps behind me?
โW-wellโฆโ
Mizuta-san continued, her eyes darting around nervously.
โI-I thought that if someone like me walked right next to you, it would be a bother for you, Komachi-sanโฆโ
โโฆโฆโ
That was such a typical โshy personโ kind of reason.
Well, I guess it wouldnโt usually be this extreme, though.
โUm, Mizuta-san. When you walk so far away from me, it actually hurts my feelings.โ
โHuh? R-reallyโฆ?โ
โYes.โ
โIโm s-so sorryโฆ!โ
Mizuta-san hurriedly took three steps toward me.
But this time, it was the exact opposite.
We were standing side by side, but now we were so close our shoulders were touching.
โUm, Mizuta-sanโฆโ
โYesโฆ?โ
โYouโre too close this time.โ
โOh, Iโm s-so sorryโฆ!!โ
Mizuta-san panicked again and jumped sideways.
That left enough space between them for a motorcycle to easily pass through.
โUm, Mizuta-sanโฆโ
โYesโฆ?โ
โโฆYouโre too far away.โ
It seemed Mizuta-sanโs sense of distance had no middle ground.
ใโ
We arrived at the mall.
Mizuta-san looked around, her eyes darting everywhere, just like someone whoโd just moved to the city.
โI-itโs sooo huge, and the people look like little specks of dustโฆโฆโ
โIsnโt that last part you said a little weird?โ
Maybe because it was the weekend, there were indeed quite a lot of people.
โOh, come to think of it, Mizuta-san, do you have an ideal image or anything?โ
โI-ideal imageโฆ?โ
โYes. Like the kind of vibe youโd like to have. An idol or an actress, for example.โ
โI do want to be like my avatar, thoughโฆโ
โโฆโฆโ
So that pink-haired avatar was her ideal self, packed with everything she liked.
But dyeing her hair pink out of the blue was a bit of a stretch.
Even before we get to the hair, thereโs no way she could wear that revealing outfit in real life.
Thereโs no way theyโd sell clothes like that at this mall.
Mizuta hurriedly added.
โO-of course I know I canโt actually be like that in real lifeโฆ! S-soโฆโ
She glanced up at me nervously.
โCould you, u-um, make me cute the way you imagine, Komachi-sanโฆ?โ
My eyes widened.
Man, Yamamoto really was right.
For some reason, Iโd ended up being the one to give Mizuta-san a makeover.
โO-of course, no matter how much I dress up, the raw material is what it isโฆโ
โNo, no, youโll be plenty cute. Letโs seeโฆ first, letโs think about where to start.โ
I carefully examined Mizuta-san from head to toe.
It was certainly true that her clothes werenโt bringing out her best features at all.
But there was a more urgent problem than that.
โMizuta-san, do you happen to have a hair straightener at home?โ
โHuh? A, a hair straightenerโฆ? Whatโs thatโฆ?โ
โโฆโฆโ
Wait, even if sheโs completely out of touch with fashion, surely she should know something like that.
Mizuta, are you surprisingly naive?
โThis might be rude to ask, but is your hair like that naturally?โ
โYesโฆ No matter how much I wash and dry it, it always ends up like this. I got it from my dadโฆโ
I see. Iโll have to start by doing something about her hair first.
โWell then, before we go shopping for clothes, why donโt we go to a hair salon first?โ
โA h-hair salonโฆ! U-uh, isnโt that kind of expensiveโฆ?โ
โOh, are you short on money?โ
I was planning to lend her the money to cover the salon bill if she needed it.
โOh, no. Actually, my mom gave me some extra allowance today.โ
โHuh? Really?โ
โWhen I told her it was the boy next door, my mom seemed really excited, or somethingโฆโ
Could it be that Mizuta-sanโs mom is under a massive misunderstanding?
Considering how bad Mizuta-san usually is at explaining things, it was entirely possible.
โW-wellโฆ Iโve never actually been to a hair salon before.โ
โHuh? So youโve been cutting your own hair every time?โ
โOh, noโฆ I ask my mom to do itโฆโ
Mizuta fidgeted, twisting her fingers together, and continued in a quiet voice.
โHehe, thanks to you, Komachi-san, it feels like Iโm having more and more โfirstsโ lately.โ
A passerby turned to look at me with a startled expression.